COVER OF THE YEAR AND RECENTLY PUBLISHED

Lumo Magazine Issue 4, featuring one of my fox pictures was recently awarded Magazine Cover of the Year in Finland. Below is a picture from the awards (credit: Merja Yeung/Edit Magazine Awards 2015/FPPA) of Lasse Kurkela at the awards gala in Helsinki. Lasse was commended twice in the 2013 Wildlife Photographer of the Year at just 10 years of age.

I've had a few stories and covers published recently including another fox on the cover of RSPB kids' magazine Bird Life and features in both BBC Wildlife Magazine and BBC Countryfile Magazine. Opening spreads below..

REGULAR PHOTOGRAPHY COLUMN IN BBC WILDLIFE MAGAZINE

Since November 2015, I've been writing a regular photography column in BBC Wildlife Magazine, where I choose 3 images that illustrate different ways to shoot a seasonal subject. The March issue is out this week and for my 5th instalment I've chosen amphibians, as they're emerging from hibernation across the UK at the moment and can be great subjects to get creative with.

I can't post the copy from my latest column as it's still in the shops, but here's a transcript from a previous issue - BBC Wildlife Magazine - Jan 2016 - 3 Ways to Photograph Winter Knot...

        "January days are often brief and bitter, but head out to the mudflats and you’ll find one of the greatest photo opportunities of the year. This habitat is incredibly rich in worms and molluscs, attracting tens of thousands of knot and other waders. Their daily lives are governed by the tides, which makes it easy to predict their routine: feasting at low tide, roosting at high tide, and in between putting on spectacular aerial displays with clouds of birds twisting and wheeling in apparent unison. All of this drama is bathed in the warm, golden glow of the low winter sun. Sam Hobson

IN-FLIGHT FOCUS - Thousands of knot taking flight is a breathtaking sight. Wait for an incoming tide, when the birds are pushed up the beach towards the roost. At first they will take to the air in small, rippling waves, but as the tide creeps in, the flocks get larger and closer. Use a long lens to fill the frame or a shorter lens to capture the whole flock. Be ready for the moment when the birds turn away from you, revealing their silvery undersides like a shoal of fish catching the sun.

PICK A PORTRAIT - Focus on an individual to capture feather detail and behaviour. The feeding flock at low tide is more spread out, so keep to the edge, approach slowly and wait for them to come to you. Retaining a small channel of water as a barrier can help keep the birds at ease (be wary of dangerous channels, quicksand and rushing incoming tides, though).

RECORD A ROOST - The busy, high-tide knot roost is all about shoulder-barging and hustle and bustle. Use a tripod and slightly slow shutter speed to create a sense of movement as the birds shuffle around. Picking out another species within the flock, such as this oystercatcher, adds a focal point together with a splash of colour."

BBC WILDLIFE MAGAZINE - GULL FEATURE PUBLISHED

BBC Wildlife Magazine (October 2015) has just published my gull feature, which I've been working on for the past couple of years. It follows a summer of hysteria in the British media about gulls attacking people and their pets and hopefully provides a refreshingly accurate take on the situation which looks at the latest research and science and interviews experts in the field - many of which I've had the privilege to work with during the project. We published the feature early due to the media frenzy this summer, so I'm still working on the project, but these are some of my favourite pictures that either made the feature or will hopefully be published when the project is complete.

BBC WILDLIFE MAGAZINE OPENERS WITH CHRIS PACKHAM

For the previous two months, my pictures have been used for the opening double page spread in BBC Wildlife Magazine, which is apparently unprecedented! It's a great slot, where Chris Packham discusses a UK wildlife conservation issue.

Last month it was a lesser spotted woodpecker, which I photographed in the Malvern hills in Herefordshire. Lesser spots are the UK's smallest and rarest woodpecker - now considered too rare to be monitored by national surveys. It took a colleague of mine 4 years to locate a lesser spot nest, so I was extremely privileged to be invited to photograph it. I wanted to include the context of the scruffy orchard, as without this unique habitat, these birds wouldn't survive at all in this country. Setting up a shot like this requires a lot of patience and I wouldn't recommend this type of photography without a lot of planning and research and a good awareness of animal behaviour and the laws regarding photographing birds at the nest. it's not worth potentially disturbing a rare species at a sensitive time of year for a picture and I wouldn't have attempted a shot like this without advice from experts and plenty of experience shooting more common birds in the same way.

This month, they used a hedgehog I recently shot for the Avon Wildlife Trust's My Wild City project. My Wild City is a great initiative I am strongly behind, as it's all about "creating a nature-rich city that puts wildlife right on our doorsteps, giving everyone the opportunity to experience the joy of wildlife every day".. What could be better than that?! You can find out more about the project here and if you're interested in AWT's AGM where there'll be a My Wild City showcase where I'll be talking and showing some pictures, you can find out more and book tickets here.

BBC WILDLIFE FEB 2015 - HOW TO PHOTOGRAPH URBAN WILDLIFE

If you want to know how to photograph urban wildlife, check out the new Feb 2015 issue of BBC Wildlife Magazine. My best tips and advice about photographing UK wildlife in the city are condensed into a double page "how to" tutorial - Available today http://www.discoverwildlife.com/magazine/current-issue

BBC WILDLIFE MAGAZINE - URBAN GOSHAWK FEATURE PUBLISHED

The latest issue of BBC Wildlife Magazine (January 2015) hits the shelves on Monday and I'm excited to share that it's running my Berlin goshawk story. I've been working on this for some time now and it's been a bit of a journey from my first trip out to find them at the beginning of 2013. I've met lots of people working with goshawks and raptors along the way and some have become close friends. I took Ben Hoare, the features editor of Wildlife Mag out to Berlin with me this Summer to meet some of them, so that he could find out a bit more about the project and interview the people working with and monitoring the goshawks before writing the feature. 2015 is the "year of the Goshawk" in Germany, so it's a great time for it to be published and Ben has done a great job in telling the full story. Subscribers to the mag should have their copies already, but it officially goes on sale on Monday 22nd December so please go and check it out.

You can see more of my pictures from this project on my site: www.samhobson.co.uk/urban-goshawk

A web gallery is also being featured on the BBC Discover Wildlife Site: www.discoverwildlife.com/gallery/goshawks-berlin

The behind the scenes video on the Wildlife Mag Youtube Channel is here: http://youtu.be/d2tboE0fePw

Massive thanks to Norbert, Bea, Rainer, Olly, Manuela, Lutz, Felix and all the guys who helped me get the pictures and made it so much fun and big thanks to everyone at Wildlife Mag for making it happen!

BBC WILDLIFE MAG EDITOR NAMES PARAKEETS PICTURE OF THE YEAR

A feature in the current "Christmas Special" issue of Amateur Photographer Magazine asks 10 magazine, agency and website editors to select their favourite image from 2014. Matt Swaine, editor of BBC Wildlife Magazine has picked my WPY and GDT EWPY awarded image of parakeets as his favourite of the year and here's what he says about it.. Thanks Matt!

Matt Swaine - Editor of BBC Wildlife Magazine

Rose-ringed Parakeets Flying Over a London Cemetery by Sam Hobson

I would like to nominate Sam Hobson’s picture, which was a finalist in the 2014 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. Sam specialises in urban wildlife and works hard to understand animal behaviour to get the right image. I believe this shot was taken in a graveyard in South London and it shows rose-ringed parakeets – an alien species that is now becoming quite commonplace on garden feeders in this part of the UK. Invasive species are a serious issue, and this photo shows these birds in a clearly British setting, bringing home just how commonplace they have become.

UPDATE - 20th December 2014 - Parakeets also included in Daily Mail Most Amazing Pictures of 2014

Amateur Photographer Magazine - 20-27 December 2014 - Images of the Year

BBC WILDLIFE COVER AND WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

Tuesday was definitely my biggest night of the year. First of all, it was Wildlife Photographer of the year week, which in itself was great to be a part of. The night of the awards was loads of fun and the standard this year is absolutely incredible. My parakeet image "Feral Spirits" was a finalist in the birds category so I got my first peek of it in the special 50th anniversary awards book and in the competition exhibition at the Natural History Museum. I also had a dream come true when I got to meet Sir David Attenborough and shake him by the hand. He's been a hero of mine ever since I can remember and has always been an inspiration in keeping my interest in natural history alive. What made the night even more special, was that I got to see my fox image on the cover of BBC Wildlife Magazine. The special WPY issue featuring all the winners is given out on the night with a copy of the WPY book, and the awards is the first time anybody sees it, so to have the front cover and of this particular issue totally blew me away. Finally, it was also announced that my parakeet image was highly commended in the GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year in the Man and Nature category. To say I'm on a high is quite an understatement!

BBC Wildlife magazine are currently running a gallery of my fox pictures including the cover: www.discoverwildlife.com/gallery/amazing-urban-fox-photos

BBC WILDLIFE MAGAZINE DOUBLE PAGE OPENER

Really excited to see that BBC Wildlife Magazine have chosen my image of a Barbary ground squirrel as their opening double page spread in the new July issue. This image was made on a recent trip to Fuerteventura and although I've had my work published in Wildlife Mag before, to have the opener is a real priviledge!

Nikon D800, Nikon 17-35mm f2.8, SB700, Pocket Wizard +III

BBC URBAN GOSHAWK FEATURE UPDATE

Just been away for perhaps my last trip out to Berlin for a while to photograph urban goshawks. I went out there for the 4th time over 2 years last week to photograph my friend Norbert and his colleagues ringing nestlings. This time I took Ben Hoare, the features editor at BBC Wildlife Magazine to meet everyone and get involved. We had a great week sampling plenty of Berlin's bars and saw some great wildlife - not just goshawks, but urban wild boar too! Ben will be writing the feature and it should be published with my pictures later in the year.

The picture above is a frame from a timelapse sequence I set going on a camera attached to Norbert's head. Interesting to see things from his perspective!